Blowpipe apparatus.



W. G. BUCKNAM. BLOWPIPE APPARATUS APPLICATION FILED SEPT.18,1912.

1 059 329 Patented Apr. 15, 1913.

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APPLICATION FILED SEPT.18,1912.

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WORTHY C. BUCKNAM, 0F JERSEY C ITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO DAVIS- BOURNONVILLE COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

BLOWI'IPE APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Original application filed May 4, 1912, Serial No. 695,290. Divided and this application filed September 18,

1912. Serial No. 720,935.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WORTHY C. BUGKNAM, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Marion, Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have 111: vented certain new and useful Improvements in Blowpipe Apparatus, of which the fol' lowing is a specification.

This invention relates ,to apparatus for severing metals by means of gases. The action is, of course, not cutting at all in the mechanical sense but a burning away of the metal along the line of the cut, "by an oxygen jet, assisted by a heating flame of high temperature composed of oxygen and a combustible gas, as acetylene or hydrogen. In order to secure accuracy, continuity and cleanness of cutting, uniformity of relative movement between the heating and oxidizing agents and the work is of primary importance; that is to say, there is an ascertainable speed of cutting which gives best results and beyond which the operation will be interrupted because of the metal not being kept hot enough at the oint of impingement of the oxygen jet. or straight line or circular cutting it is comparatively simple to provide for uniform standard propulsion, but heretofore practically the only way to effect irregular cutting was by means of hand torches. I have succeeded in providing means for mechanically supporting and relatively guiding and driving the gas cutting means and the work at uniform speed over any desired or irregular course or in conformity with any design.

The embodiment of the invention herein illustrated comprises a pantograph structure and means for applying a mechanical uniform drive thereto so that the jets are moved relatively to the work at approximately uniform speed. The mechamcal' drive may be effected either manually or by power means,

though preferably by the latter; and in a.

desirable embodiment of the invention a driving motor is mounted on and carried by the pantograph. The pantograph is provided with a wheel tracer or rolling sup ort, which is capable of traveling in any mection and is driven by a motor or other suitable source of -vpower, or by hand, through suitable mechanical connections insuring lengt uniformity and steadiness of movement. Meansare provided for guiding the wheel tracer In its movements.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the lnvention: Figure 1 is. a plan view of a sultable form of the apparatus; Fig. 2 is a sideelevation thereof, the legs of the supporting structure being broken away; Fig. 3 1s a sectional elevation on an enlarged scale of the wheel tracer, its swiveled support, and one form of driving means and connections; Fig. 4 is an elevation at right angles to Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a side elevation taken at right angles to Fig. 4, showing the wheel tracer and the lifting means for stopping the travel thereof; Fig. 6 is a detail sectional elevation taken at the main or supporting pivot of the apparatus; Fig. 7 is a detail elevation showing another form of drive; Fig. 8 is a detail enlarged section through a form of cuttin apparatus; Figs. 9 and 10 are end views 0 the tip shown in Fig. 8 and of another form of tip; and Fig. 11 is a section on the line 11-11 of Fig. 1.

The pantograph structure may be of that customary form comprising a pivotally jointed parallelogram having one .of its members extended to carry the tracer. As shown, it comprises members 10, 11, 12 and 13, the member 11 being extended to carry the tracer and the member 13 being extended for purposes of adjustment, while the member 12 carries the part moved in accordance with the movements of the tracer. The members 10 and 13 are shown pivoted about a fixed axis, by means of collars 14: fixed to their rear ends and secured to or formed with sleeves 15, which are rotatable on an upright post 16. The pivotally jointed members of the pantograph may be formed of-tubing as shown. The members 10 and 11 are shown ivoted together by means of collars 17 xed to their ends and having pivot lugs connected by a ivot 18. The member '12 is shown provi d at its ends with similar collars 19, WhlCh are connected by pivots 20, to clamp. or split collars 21, whlch are adjustable iwise on the members 11 and 13. An adjustable holder 22 is provided on the member 12 for the part to be moved in 111115011 with the tracer. It is shown as conof any suitable table or work surfacesupr,

port 26. The latter ma be merely a frame, upon which may be lai loosely any suitable supports for the Work, as indicated at 27. The whole structure may be supported by suitable legs 29. The member 12 maybe located above the plane of the members 10,

11 and 13, so as to avoid interference therewith. The sleeves 15 are shown spaced apart by a double cone 16 having a tight fit on the post 16. Bearing balls are interposed between the sleeves 15and the cone 16 and between the sleeves and the bearing members 16". Nut-s 16 secure the whole in assembled relation.

A tracer is-employed which is adapted to be propelled over a plane surface, which may carry any suitable design, one being illustrated at 30 in Fig. l. The design may be drawn on a sheetof paper or other material 31 placed on or fixed'to the plane support 28. The preferable form of tracer is a thin disk or wheel 32. A suitable support is provided for this wheel, and this support is swiveled with relation to the pantograph structure' In the particular construction illustrated the said wheel is mounted on a shaft 33 connecting the mem'- bers 34 of a bifurcated holder, the

neck 35 of which has the lower end of a bushing or tubular bearing 36 screwed into it. The neck 35 and the bushing 36 may be locked together by a nut 37. The upper, unthreaded portion of the bushing 36 is received rotatably in a. vertical tubular bearing 38 carried by or formed integrally with a suitable fixture or sleeve 39 secured to the end of the member 11. Thetswiveled support, here shown as comprising the parts 34, 35 and 36, may be mounted on ball bear ings. As shown the ends of the tubular bearing 38 are formed with race-ways 39,

'withwhich cooperate rings 40, balls 41 being interposed between. The upper ring 40 is disposedbeneath a head or flange 42 on the bushing 36, and the tightness of the swivel joint may be adjusted and fixed by nuts 43, 44 on the threaded portion of the bushing 36 beneath the lower ring 40.

The pantograph constitutes a guiding structure universally movable in a plane and the tracer constitutes a rolling supporttherefor capable of traveling in any direction.

In accordance with the invention means are previded for 'mecha n' y r pelling.

members 34 of the swiveled support.

the tracer wheel 32, and through it the pantograph or universally movable structure. The means may either be manually operated or power driven, though preferably the lat-. ter. In either casethe mechanical propulsion insures steadiness and uniformity of movement, and being applied to a rolling tracer enables the apparatus to be controlled wit-l1 the greatest ease and eXact-itude. The driving mechanism or a part of it is conaxial with the swivel axis of the support for the tracer wheel 32. Thus a vertical driving shaft is extended through the bushing 36 and the neck '35, and between the This shaft is shown as comprising two sections 45 and 46, suitably coupled at their meeting ends as indicated at 47. The upper shaft section 45 has a suitable gear or collar member 48 or 49 (see Fig. 7) secured to its upper, end immediately over the top of the head 42 of the bushing; and the lower end of this shaft section is preferably enlarged to afford a cone bearing 50, which contacts with the corresponding internal cone bearing formed in the lower end of the bushing. The bushing or sleeve 36 is preferably of larger internal diameter than the shaft section 45 except at its upper end, where it has a collet bearing 50*. The upper end of the shaft section 46 may also be enlarged to afford a .cone bearing 51 contacting with the corresponding conical surface in the neck 35. The lower end of the shaft section 46 carries a a suitable gear 52 immediately below a tubul'ardepending' bearing 53. The gear 52 is preferably a worm, which meshes with a worm wheel 54, to which is secured a gear 55 meshing with a gear 56, which latter is rigid with the tracer wheel 32. The conaxial arrangement of the vertical drive shaft enables the tracer wheel to be driven irrespective of the turning of the swiveled sup port. Thus, part of the driving means, or v the source of power or themeans ofapplication of manual force, may be mounted on" the pantograph structure proper, and more particularly on the member 11.

In the preferred construction an electric motor 57 of suitable design is mounted" on a platform 58 carried by a bracket 59 formed with or secured to the collar fixture 39. A worm 60' is mounted on the armature shaft and meshes with a worm gear 48 onthe upper end of the shaft section 45. The wires for supplying the motor with current may be suitably arranged without. interfering with the movements of the pantograph. It

.meshes with a bevel pinion 61 carried by a names!) horizontal shaft 62, which is journaled in a bearing 63 on the collar fixture 39 and has a suitable handle crank 64. The remainder of the driving mechanism may be the same as that shown in Figs. 3and 4.

Means are provided for guiding the tracer in its movements over the design or supporting surface. In the particular con struction illustrated a plurality of radiating handles 65 are secured to the nut43 on the bushing or sleeve 36 of the swiveled support. In this way manual operating means are provided which is always presented for convenient manipulation irrespective of the turning of the swiveled support.

Means are provided for stopping the travel of the power driven tracer, by pro jecting downward a part which presses against the underlying surface and thereby lifts the tracer. In the preferred form of this device an elongated foot piece 66 is mounted slidably on one of the side members 34 of the swiveled support. This slide is shown as provided with slots which receivei the shanks of screws 67 and 68 secured to.

the member 34. A lever 98 is provided for operating the member 66. It is fulcrumed;

on the swiveled support as by being pivoted on the screw 67 and it is connected wit-h the foot member 66 by a link 69, pivoted at 70 to the lever 98 and at 71 to the slide 66. A spring 72 urges the slide 66 downward, and is preferably secured at one end to the screw 68 and at the other end to the link 69, at the point 73. The link 69 contacts with a stop when carried past center by the move ment of the lever 98 to retract or raise the foot member 66, and the pull of the spring holds the link against this stop so as to main: tain the lifting member 66 in inoperative position. Preferably the link 69 contacts with the screw 67 acting as such stop, and to this end the link 69 is of curved or bent formation, so that, normally, as shown in Fig. 5, the effort of the spring is transmitted to the fixed stop 67, so that the spring is powerless to project the foot member 66 downward until the lever 98 is moved sufficiently to the right to carry the pivot 70 past the line of centers. Thus, a very slight movement of the operating or controlling lever 98 is suflicient to enable the spring 72 to project the foot member 66 downward thereby raising the swiveled support, and with it the tracer wheel 32, thus immediately stopping the travel of the tracer and the movement of the pantograph. It will i be understood that there is sufficient flexibility in the pantograph structure to permit the slight raising of the swiveled support sufficient to cause the wheel 34 to clear the underlying surface.

A pointer 74 is provided in advance of and in direct alinement with the periphery of the tracer wheel 32, this pointer being spaced but slightly above the underlying surface. Another :pointer is provided immediately adjacent the side of the wheel and at its lowest point, this pointer being also slightly spaced above the surface traveled over. Both these pointers may be formed on a plate 76 secured to oneof the side members 34 of the swiveled support.

The form of the gas cutting apparatus carried by the pantograph may be varied. It has heating and cutting jet provisions, that is to say, nozzles or conduits and orifices for delivering a stream or streams of oxygen accompanied by a stream or streamso'f a heatin 'mixture composed of oxygen and a combusti le gas, these heating and cutting streams or jets being arranged in suitable relation so as to act locally upon the metal to be cut. As is well known, the heating flameor flames raise the metal to and maintain it at a temperature sufliciently elevated so that the oxygen stream or jet can oxidize or burn it with great rapidity. It is important that the gas cutting apparatus be moved with practically absolute uniformity, so that the cutting oxygen jet may not be moved outside of the small highly heated zone, in which event the cutting operation would be brought to a stop.

I believe that I am the first to provide means for effecting uniform relative guided movement between the jets of a gas cutting apparatus and the work over irregular courses, so that any desired or odd figure can be accurately and expeditiously out.

A suitable form of cutting apparatus or torch is illustrated, but it will be understood that this showing is primarily for the purpose of illustration. The apparatus or torch, designated as a whole by the numeral 77, has a tubular casing 78, which is received and clamped in the tubular socket 23. Through this casing pass three pipes or conduits 79, 80 and 81, which at their rear ends have valved connections 82, S3 and 84, for the attachment of flexible tubes leading from suitable sources of supply. At their forward or lower ends the conduits communicate with passages or spaces 85, 86 and 87 in a suitable head 88. In this head is a removable tip 89, which may be replaced by others of different sizes, it being held in place by a screw-threaded bushing 90. The tip is shown as provided with a central bore or passage 91, which communicates at its rear or upper end with the conduit 80, and with other bores or passages 92, which have inlets 93, 9st connnunieating, respectively, with the passages and 87 in the head 88. It is desirable to provide the rear or upper part of the tip 89 with annular grooves 95 and 96, for establishing conimunication between the inlets 93 and 9st and the passages 85 and 87. The bore 91 delivers a jet of oxygen for cutting, the pipe 80 being connected with a suitable source of plication.

gas cutting apparatus is shown for purposes of illustration and is not claimed in this ap- Any suitable number of the heating jet bores or orifices 92 may be disposed at different sides of the central cutting jet passage 91. Five of these heating jet orifices are shown. I11 this way it is insured that the cutting jet will always be receded more or less exactly by a heating et, to preheat the metal. r

In operation the tracer 32 is propelled over the plane design, either manually or by power. The torch77 is moved accordingly. The direction of movement of the tracer may be instantly changed by means of the handles 65. The travel of the tracer and the movement of the pantograph may be instantly stopped by tripping the lever 98, so as to permit the spring 72 to lift the tracer wheel oft the underlying surface. The pointer 74 enablesthe tracer wheel to be guided in a straight line with great precision, and the pointer 75 indicates when the wheel has reached a turning point in the design. The cutting and heating jets directed by the torch 77 against the work are caused to travel in accordance with the design fol-. lowed, by the tracer, and with a uniformity insuring perfect cutting. Vertical adjustment for different thicknesses of work may be secured by shifting the torch 77 vertically in the holder 23, and also by raising and lowering the post 16 in the socket 25.

. To correspond with the latter adjustment the design support or table 28 is also raised and lowered. To this end it may be mounted 'on a vertical screw 28 having threaded engagement with a nut bracket, 28* carried by the main'support 26. Thus, the table may be raised and lowered by rotating it.

Means may be provided for causing the cutting apparatus or torch 77 to turn in unison with the tracer.

Such means may be widely varled, but in the preferred construction illustrated lnFigs. 1, 2 and 11, it comprises sprocket wheels 100 and 101 conaxial with the swivel axis of the tracer and the longitudinal axis of the torch, intermediate sprocket wheels 102 and 103 fixed on the shaft 20 constituting the pivot between the members 11 and 12 of the pantograph, and sprocket chains 104 and 105. The sprocket wheel 100 may be clamped between the two nuts 43 and 44 on the threaded part of the bushing '36. These sprocket wheels and chains are not shown in the views other than those just enumerated, because the feature,

while desirable, isnot essential. As shown more particularly in Fig. 11, the sleeve attachment 21 on the pantograph member 11 may have spaced upper and lower pivot lugs 106, 107, between which is renewed the pivot lug 108 of the attachmentl9. Cones 109, 110- may be inserted with a tight fit 1n, the lugs 106, 107, and bearing balls may be inserted between these cones and race-ways formed in the lug 108. The pivot shaft 20 is shown as provided with a collar 111 below the cone 110, and a nut and lock-nut 112 and 113 are screwed onto the upper end of the shaft above the cone 109. When the cutting apparatus is caused to turn in unison with the tracer it is unnecessary to surround the cutting jet orifice with heating jet orifices. As shown in Fig. 10 it is sufficient to have one heating jet orifice 92 and as is well understood this single heating jet tus has been described with particularity,

it will be understood that the construction shown may. be varied widely without departing from the invention. Thus 1t may be the work which is moved by the pantograph and not the jet-delivering apparatus. .The gas cutting apparatus fOIHllII the subject-matter of this application constltutes a division of my application filed May 4, 1912, Serial No. 695,290.

What I claim as new is:

1. The combination of means for delivering jets of gaseous heating and oxldlzmg agents, means for supporting the same for universal movement in a plane, and mechanical means for propelling said jet-delivering means at uniform speed in any and changing directions;

2. The combination of means for delivering-jets of heating and oxidizing agents, a worksupport, a tracer, and pantographlc connections for producing relative movement between said-means and the work in accordance with the movements of the tracer.

3, The combination of a stationary support, means for delivering jets of heating and oxidizing agents, and a structure supporting said means from said stationary support and permitting universal movement thereof in a plane, said structure being pivoted'on said support and-comprlsing arms connected with each other by pivot joints the axes of the several pivot joints bein perpendicular to such plane.

4; The combination of means for delivering jets 'of heating and oxidizing agents, mechanism for supporting and propelling the same at uniform speed 1n any direction,

and means enabling said jet-delivering means to turn corners in its movement.

5. The combination of a stationary support, a blow-pipe, 'a pivotally jointed structure universally movable in a plane connecting said blow-pipe to said support, a wheel adapted to travel on an underlying surface, means universally movable in a plane by and a swivel connection between said Wheel said structure. and said structure. I In witness whereof I have signed my -6. The combination of a stationary supname in the presence of two subscribing wit- 5 porltl, a pivotallg jointeid arm mructure pig nesses.

ota y connecte to sai suppcst soas to e universally movable in a plane, a rolling WORTHY BUCKNAM' support for said structure movable in any Witnesses: direction, driving mechanism connected with J. F. BIRANDENBURG, 10 said rolling support, and jet-delivering LOUELLA F. LITTLE. 

